Daily Breeze (Torrance)

Riding horseback while drunk can bring a DUI

- — Mario Luna, Anaheim — Brice Fialcowitz, Santa Ana To ask Honk questions, reach him at honk@ocregister.com. He only answers those that are published. To see Honk online: ocregister.com/tag/honk. Twitter: @OCRegister­Honk

QHello, Honk: While driving in Hemet, I noticed some horses walking on a public sidewalk. I didn't see any horse trails, such as in Anaheim Hills and in Yorba Linda. Then a few blocks later, I saw another horse on a public sidewalk, but this time the rider was drinking a beer. Can a horse use a public sidewalk, and can you consume beer while riding a horse on a public sidewalk, trail or road?

ARiders are prohibited from guiding their steeds onto sidewalks, said Alan Reyes, a spokesman for Hemet, unless there is a sign posted allowing such.

He was kind enough to have a traffic officer dig into state law for that answer, which doesn't appear to be spelled out neatly in the California Vehicle Code, but the officer was able to interpret the law by looking at several sections.

As to drinking alcohol in a public space, a city law prevents anyone from doing so unless that is explicitly allowed by authoritie­s, say during a fair or fundraiser.

That includes when taking Mr. Ed out for a trot.

“If a civilian was (drinking) an alcoholic beverage in Hemet while riding their horse on a public sidewalk, it would be treated as drinking in a public space,” Reyes said.

Horses with riders, under state law, are in many situations treated as vehicles. So it could get worse than an open-container citation, much worse — if warranted, the rider could get charged with driving under the influence.

QA gas station recently hit my debit card for more than $100 when I'd pumped only $10 worth. The correct debit was shortly made, but is the brief overcharge even legal? Surely in 2022, the station's computer can tell when I've pumped $10.

Afew years ago, Honk purchased a pizza or two and was worried about an overcharge appearing on his account. He knew the owner, who explained it would go away, and it did.

On some transactio­ns, the business first makes sure you have the cash to pay the bill — and electronic­ally contacts your cardholder and gets authorizat­ion for an amount higher than the tab will be.

“This generally occurs at the gas pump or at a restaurant,” one company told Honk this month when he was issued a card loaded up with money as a reward for buying contacts. “The hold is only temporary until the transactio­n is finalized.

“While the hold is typically brief, it may remain on your card for up to seven days. Once the transactio­n is finalized, you will only pay for the gas you purchased.”

Holds used to be perhaps $100 to $125.

crimes such as public intoxicati­on and “simple DUIs.”

Bass' campaign would not specify why she withdrew her endorsemen­t of Gill but denied it was in response to the L.A. Democratic Party's endorsemen­t of Feldstein Soto. Bass recently garnered the party's endorsemen­t.

Gill tweeted that “Regardless of the events of today, Karen Bass is a personal friend & I am proud to support her mayoral run. That said, we want to clarify the facts.”

Bass' endorsemen­t of him was on Gill's website early Friday, but later in the day it was no longer there.

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